Software designed to detect and potentially eliminate viruses before they have had a chance to wreak havoc within the system. Anti-virus software can also repair or quarantine files that have already been infected by virus activity. See also Virus and Electronic Infections. mmmmm

Any software application that displays advertising banners while the program is running. Adware often includes code that tracks a user’s personal information and passes it on to third parties without the user’s authorization or knowledge. And if you gather enough of it, adware slows down your computer significantly. Over time, performance can be so degraded that you may have trouble working productively. See also Spyware and Malware.